As climate impacts intensify across the Pacific, governments and communities are developing practical solutions to help people adapt, reduce displacement risks, and move with dignity when necessary. At least 50,000 Pacific Islanders are at risk of being displaced by disasters and climate-related events each year, but research from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) shows that innovative approaches are gaining momentum across the region, helping communities anticipate risks, strengthen resilience and give people more options before crises occur.
"Pacific communities are on the frontlines of climate change, but they are also helping shape some of the most innovative responses," said Iori Kato, IOM Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific. "The region is showing that climate mobility is not only about responding to displacement. It is about creating practical options that help people adapt, remain safely where they are whenever possible, and move with dignity when necessary."
The Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility , the world's first regional framework to comprehensively address migration, displacement, planned relocation and support for people to remain safely in place in the context of climate change, was endorsed by Pacific leaders in 2023. Its 2025-2030 Implementation Plan is now helping countries turn these commitments into action, offering lessons that extend well beyond the Pacific.
Recent IOM research highlights how these efforts are taking shape across the Pacific and wider Asia-Pacific region, from locally led adaptation and climate risk mapping to innovative financing and community-centred approaches to planned relocation.
Since October, new community-led projects in Vanuatu and Fiji have been drawing on preliminary findings from IOM's Climate Mobility Innovation and its Risk Index for Climate Displacement, which helps identify areas where displacement risks are highest and empowers communities to develop solutions tailored to their needs. One project in Vanuatu aims to protect access to safe water by shielding natural springs from volcanic ash and extreme weather, connecting them to villages through piped systems.
Other initiatives focus on strengthening local livelihoods and building long-term resilience, including training local technicians to maintain water infrastructure. Efforts to restore pandanus, a locally grown plant whose leaves are used for traditional weaving, along eroding coastlines are helping women sustain their livelihoods and preserve these skills for future generations.
Similar efforts have begun in Fiji, where evidence on displacement risks is helping guide investments based on community priorities. Drainage systems are being strengthened in areas affected by recurring floods to protect homes, businesses, and transport links. New solar-powered lighting is also helping keep essential routes safe and accessible when cyclones disrupt electricity supply.
Locally driven investments can make a tangible difference in helping communities manage climate risks. But expanding such solutions requires sustained support and more accessible climate finance.
"The Pacific is showing that solutions are possible," Kato added. "The challenge now is ensuring they reach the scale needed to protect communities and expand choices for the future. COP31 must bring climate finance closer to those in greatest need so that proven local solutions can be sustained and inform global action."
At the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), taking place this week in Antalya, Türkiye, IOM is urging governments and international partners to increase investment in locally led solutions that enable communities to adapt and remain safely in place. IOM is also calling for better integration of migration, displacement and planned relocation into global climate action, including adaptation, loss and damage, and the just transition.
